Three Kisses
by HighlandsgirlLilyGhostShellSue
Summary: "A kiss can be a comma, a question mark or an exclamation point. These are the key points of punctuation that every woman ought to know." This quote from Mistinguett (c.1955) seemed perfect for Stephanie and Ranger. Three friends offer you three chapters about kisses told from Ranger's POV.
1. Comma

_JE owns the rights to anything familiar. All mistakes are mine._

Thanks **highlands girl** and **LilyGhost** for allowing me to collaborate with you again. It's so much fun!

* * *

The intoxicating aroma of jasmine permeated my senses as I slid open the glass door separating my hotel room from the small balcony overlooking the pool. The whole city seemed to be covered with the shrubbery and the scent had my eyes involuntarily closing as the memory of the last time I saw her washed over me like the warm summer rain currently cascading from the dusky sky.

She always smelled like the ubiquitous flower. Her hair, her perfume. Or maybe it was her lotion. I was never sure but she invariably emanated the soft floral fragrance and that night was no exception.

Weeks had gone by and I could still recall every detail as if no time had passed. The light hint of jasmine on her skin, the soft tickle of her unruly curls across my cheek. The quick inhale of breath just before my lips touched hers.

That last kiss was... _unexpected_. Don't get me wrong, I'd been lucky enough to taste her on multiple occasions yet that time there was something different. Something... _more_. Things with Stephanie had always been ambiguous, mostly by my design, so realizing I no longer wished them to be so opaque came as a surprise. I very much wanted to explore the feeling further, but as always seems to be the case with us, work intervened.

For the first time in a long time I really wanted to ignore the vibrating phone at my hip but of course I didn't and was on a plane an hour later.

It was supposed to be a quick trip to the west coast yet close to seven weeks later I was still in California and she was still on my mind the better part of every day. More times than I cared to admit I found myself contemplating what could have, or what _should_ have happened had I not left that night.

I leaned against the railing and let out a sigh as the showers drifted into a light misting of moisture. Rain was rare in Southern California, especially this time of year but the drought ravaged state desperately needed it so there wouldn't be any complaints, especially from me. I preferred a wetter climate and was anxious to get home to the humid Jersey air.

When I eventually went back inside and crawled beneath the sheets I was no closer to sleep than I'd been when I'd first attempted to go to bed. I lay there as time marched on with only thoughts of a lingering kiss keeping much needed slumber at bay.

The digital clock on the nightstand inched it's way past one in the morning and I gave up the ghost. I wanted to be where I could fall asleep and wake up with her beside me. _I wanted to stop running from the one thing in my life that's ever been right._

I snatched my phone from its spot next to the clock and ignoring the unfortunate time difference, hit the correct speed dial number.

It took one ring longer than I anticipated for an answer and Tank's unmistakable baritone sounded annoyed.

"Someone better be dead."

"Only you if you don't get me on the next flight out of here."

A long pause where I imagined multiple curse words were being silently shouted followed my reply.

"Is the job done?"

"Enough so I feel comfortable leaving."

"I'll see what I can do."

I wasn't even mad when he disconnected, knowing I'd have an itinerary before my first scheduled meeting. And with the knowledge I would soon be able to have her in my arms again, sleep claimed me moments later.


	2. Question Mark

**A/N: Thanks to ShellSueD and LilyGhost. You guys inspire me.**

Because of freak thunderstorms across the Southwest, my flight out of LAX was delayed twice and ultimately cancelled.

"If you're not anxious to get home, I've got a first class seat on a direct flight to Newark tomorrow morning," the harried gate agent told me, her fingers tapping furiously on her computer keyboard.

Home, I didn't give a shit about. But I'd been away for nearly two months, and I wasn't prepared to spend one more day 3000 miles away from Stephanie.

I shook my head and tried not to sound like an asshole. "Try any airport within a two to three-hour drive of Trenton. Philadelphia. LaGuardia. JFK." I took a deep breath and tried again. "Please."

In the end, the gods of air travel and Delta Airlines smiled on me… sort of. I got the last seat on a flight to Cincinnati, Ohio and then caught a connecting flight to Baltimore. It was nearly dawn by the time I parked the rented Mercedes GLK350 in the garage at RangeMan. I'd debated with myself about going straight to Stephanie's apartment, but I desperately needed a shower and a short nap. I wanted a clear head for the conversation I wanted—no, needed—to have with her.

I fobbed open the door to my seventh floor apartment, dropped my briefcase in the foyer and tossed my keys into the silver dish on the sideboard. It took only a few seconds for me to appreciate the subtle changes that had taken place since I had left seven weeks ago. There was a hint of something sweet and floral in air, almost as if Ella had known I was coming home and filled the apartment with flowers. I moved toward the dining room, noticing that that the crystal vase in the middle of the table sat empty. The was a lone red stiletto-heeled pump near the couch, and another near the breakfast bar in the kitchen. Most surprising of all was that my bedroom door was open, soft light spilling out into the hallway, a beacon not unlike a lighthouse in a storm.

I moved to the doorway and what I saw nearly took my breath away. Stephanie was in my bed, lying on her stomach, her face pressed into my pillow. I guessed that she'd had a restless night because the comforter was crumpled on the floor, and she was loosely tangled in the sheet, her long legs bare.

I moved to the side of the bed, tapping the switch on the reading light that she had apparently forgotten to turn off before she fell asleep. I stripped out of my shirt and pants, hesitating for just a second. Yeah, I still needed a shower but I couldn't help myself. I leaned over and brushed my lips lightly across hers.

 _What are you doing here, Babe_? I ran possible scenarios in my head. Another disaster at her apartment? Stalker? Hiding from her mother?

"Hmm," she moaned. "The dreams I have in your bed are so much better than the ones I have in mine. Kissing Dream Ranger is almost as good as the real thing."

 _Almost, Babe?_

I decided I needed to up my game. I sank onto the edge of the bed and pressed my lips to hers again, this time using a little tongue. Surprisingly, I tasted grapefruit, a hint of lime and something else vaguely familiar. Stephanie rolled just enough to wrap her arms around my neck and kissed me back with a _lot_ of tongue.

 _Ah. Tequila?_

"Babe?" I asked before I could help myself.

Her eyes popped open and she smiled sleepily at me. "You're home." She blushed a little, but she didn't pull back, so I kissed her again. The shower could wait until I figured out the cause of my unexpected good fortune.

"Today was Hector's birthday," she murmured, as if that explained everything.

"Yeah?"

"He's twenty-seven and can you believe that he's never once had a party or a birthday cake?"

I'd never given it much thought, but I wasn't surprised given the barrio where he grew up and what I knew of his family. Almost guiltily, I thought about birthday celebrations at the Mañoso house. Although all the kids were grown, my mother still insisted on a celebratory dinner followed by our favorite dessert. She was bitterly disappointed when I was stuck in California for my birthday, and I had no doubt that she would be making caramel flan as soon as she knew I was back in town.

"Ella and I decided that it was time to change that," Steph continued. "Tank said we could have the party in the conference room on three so the guys working monitors could at least have dinner and some cake."

"But hopefully not Palomas," I said, conjuring up an image of the classic Mexican cocktail made from the ingredients I tasted on Stephanie's lips. I ducked my head for another quick taste, just to be sure. _How the hell did Tank run things around here while I was away?_

"No, of course not. He was very strict about that-no alcohol for anybody who was working last night or even today."

 _Thank God_. "I'm guessing that means you're not working today," I said. "I wasn't aware that you liked tequila."

"I wasn't either, before last night. Turns out it doesn't like me very much, though. Tank decided it would be safer if I stayed here last night instead of driving back to my apartment. Of course, that was before he knew you were going to be home."

"Are you saying you don't feel safe in my bed, Steph?" I slid under the sheet and covered her body with mine, pressing her into the mattress. To hell with the shower. Maybe I could convince her to take one with me.

"As I recall, you considered throwing me out the window the first time you found me here." Her voice, already husky with sleep, got a little deeper as she trailed soft kisses across my clavicle, stopping to swirl her tongue in the hollow at the base of my throat.

 _Feeling brave this morning, Babe?_ I wanted to ask. Instead I slipped my hands under her t-shirt, pulling it up as I trailed my fingers across her silky smooth skin.

"I no longer worry what you're going to do to my body," she said as I reached the underswell of her breasts. "I'm just wondering what you plan to do with my heart."


	3. Exclamation Point

**Big thanks to both highlands girl for sharing the quote that sparked this story, and for writing such a great lead in to this chapter, and ShellSueD for once again setting the perfect tone and stage for what was to follow. Ranger and Stephanie still belong to Janet.**

My fingers stilled before they could close completely over her breast.

"Is that the real reason you spent the night tossing and turning in my bed?"

"No. My being here is the Paloma's fault."

"Babe."

She sighed, and the warm exhalation made me crave the combination of tequila and her again.

"Fine. I missed you ... but I also dreaded you coming home."

Half of that I really want to hear more about. The other part of her comment, I have a problem with. Although I've been gone longer than expected, I thought we'd left things in a mutually understood spot. But it's clear she's been questioning that, me, and herself. I don't want to think of the damage another week would've done to us if I wasn't able to get back when I did.

Her lips had stopped moving on my skin, and I had to forcefully remind myself that there are a few things that should be settled before we get completely naked together again.

"Care to explain that?" I asked her.

"No ... not really, but I will."

Her arms dropped from around me and she tried to turn away. That isn't happening. Her facial expressions are easy to read and I need to know how I can make her sure of me ... sure of us.

"I want to know what's on your mind, Babe, but you have to look at me when you're saying whatever it is you're holding back."

"You always have to be in control of something, don't you?"

"Yes. But you know that already. Why were you concerned about me returning to Trenton?"

"Don't you want to talk about what kept you in California instead?" She asked, trying to glance towards the window she'd mentioned me threatening her with earlier.

I used an elbow to support my weight to keep from crushing her, then I took her chin between the thumb and index finger of my now free hand and made her face me again.

"Work and weather," I answered. "Your turn."

She looked like she wanted to argue, but didn't. "When I was with Hector, Tank, and the rest of the guys yesterday, I felt like part of the 'core team'."

"You are."

"If I am included ... it's because of _you_. I know there's an unwritten Rangeman rule stating that when you're gone, my monitoring gets increased. But when we were all celebrating Hector ... for the first time I really felt like I belonged here, like everyone actually had fun hanging out with me. If you came home and decided you enjoyed the break you had from me ... I wouldn't only lose you, but I'd lose the guys and Ella, too."

"They're your friends as well as your protectors, Steph. And not because I pay them to tolerate you. They can't help but love you, just as I couldn't ... like I still can't."

Her eyes stared at me, in shock I'd guess. I've said I love her in the past, but not when I'd been on top of her almost completely bare body while discussing what we stand to lose if we fuck up here.

"What are you telling me?" She asked. "That kiss we had before you left seemed serious, but then you didn't come back ..."

"I would have if it'd been an option."

She still seemed undecided whether or not to believe me.

"And the next time you get called to go to California, Miami, or wherever else you have business pending?"

"I'll go."

Her relieved expression changed and her face fell. She's expecting the worst, while I'm hoping for the best.

"Oh," she said, disappointment clear in that one syllable.

" _But_... I will ask if you'd like to join me. If you can't, I'll bust my ass to get things handled quickly so two days won't turn into two months again. I can't do another separation if you're going to doubt whether I'll be back for you."

"You'd want me with you even if I'm not good at anything except catching FTAs?"

"You do more than you know," I told her.

 _Like keep me civilized_ , I thought, thinking back to how I forced myself to add 'please' to something I usually just demand.

While she was picking her way carefully through that emotional minefield, I bent my head to her neck and skimmed my lips over the section of skin that pulsed faster the longer I spoke.

"I don't want you to think I'm stupid ..."

"I don't," I assured her.

"Okay ... so just to be clear, you want us to be _together/_ together?"

"Yes," I said, getting back to getting her t-shirt off her.

"Like in a way that means I can call you my boyfriend if my mother or Mary Lou asks?"

"I'd prefer you say that I'm your man, but boyfriend is acceptable."

She didn't object when my body pressed her deeper into the mattress as I slid her right arm through the shirt's sleeve, so I moved onto her left one. I kissed her mouth before I removed the shirt entirely from her body and tossed it onto the carpet by the foot of the bed.

"Are you sure?" She asked, with a slight hitch to her voice and her breathing when I tugged her thong down her legs, followed immediately after with taking her nipple into my mouth ... sucking strongly once, then twice, before speaking.

"Yes. It's now or never, Babe."

"Now," she told me, after an excruciatingly long pause.

She slid her bare foot up the back of my calf before crossing both ankles behind me.

"Definitely _now,_ " she said, putting her arms around my shoulders and urging me down until her breasts were pressed tightly into the muscles of my chest.

Her mouth fused to mine as she lifted her hips, leaving me no choice but to sink my body fully into hers, connecting us in ways that went beyond just the physical. _Now_ won't be a problem, I thought to myself as I began to move ... neither will loving her.


End file.
